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Better
skiwax
With a little help from
SINTEF, the ski-wax
manufacturer Swix has
developed a wax that
has proved to be a
winner with professional
skiers. The secret?
Nanoparticles.
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Contact:
Christian Simon,
SINTEF Materials and Chemistry
Tel: +47 22 06 75 24
Email: christian.r.simon@sintef.no
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The world’s elite downhill and Super-G
skiers win races by margins of no more than just a few hundredths
of a second. A skier’s skill is critical in winning the race,
but waxing also plays a vital role. As much as possible, wax needs
to eliminate friction between snow and ski. With solid support from
SINTEF, the wax manufacturer Swix has led in wax development for
many years, particularly with fluorocarbon additives, which have
helped make their waxes some of the fastest in the world.
MOLECULAR CARPENTRY
A few years ago, Swix, like other ski-wax manufacturers, realised
that they had gained every possible advantage from fluorocarbon
additives, and the company started to look around for other possibilities.
Leif Torgersen, head of Swix’s wax development programme,
and a researcher with laboratory facilities at SINTEF, tested commercial
blends available on the market. His work showed that that there
were few gains to be made by using the commercially available additives.
Not everyone agreed. One of Torgersen’s
colleagues, Christian Simon, a senior scientist at SINTEF Materials
and Chemistry, felt that modifying the molecular balance of the
chemicals might reduce surface tension at the wax/water interface
enough to significantly reduce friction. Now, SINTEF scientists
have done a bit of molecular carpentry, with the help of standard
chemistry and synthesis techniques, and have come up with a new
wax additive. The new wax has been tested by the scientists and
by test skiers, with good results.
INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION
“The precise composition of what we add is a commercial secret,
but carbon compounds such as fullerenes are of interest to us,”
says Leif Torgersen.
“When are we going to see these super
waxes in ski shops?”
“It is difficult to say anything definite
about that, because we still have a lot of testing to do,”
says Torgersen.
“We’re currently customising
the additives in the SINTEF laboratories. Even though these products
are aimed at toplevel competition skiers, which means they have
a fairly limited market potential, we see the possibility of industrial
production within two to five years.”
Jan Helstad
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